Meg Brown
Interviewed July 3, 2015 | Written and photographed by Nadia Honary
I approach the Northrup King Building, a giant complex of ten buildings first constructed in 1917. I hear a train go by on the railroad tracks just behind the building. The air is hot, with little shade to protect me from the relentless sun in the parking lot save for a small, landscaped area with a few trees providing shade and a couple of benches. That’s where I see artist Meg Brown casually smoking a cigarette, waiting to take me up to their studio on the fourth level of the building.
As a genderqueer ceramist who prefers they/them pronouns, Meg’s ceramics focus on enabling people to express who they are without having to verbalize it. We walk up to the fourth level and enter Meg’s studio, a huge space filled with multiple art projects and tools that they share with three other artists. We take a seat on one of the couches to begin our conversation, surrounded by art. Ceramic mugs in various stages of completion bear stamped expressions like “SEX POT,” “SLUT,” and “I’M ON TINDER.” Looking at one of the mugs, I ask Meg why they chose to use these words on their pieces. Meg’s aim is to create a space for sex positivity as well as to reclaim these words, which are usually used as an insult or to hurt people, and instead own them. In a society where sex for pleasure is still often looked down upon, specifically for female-bodied individuals, this is incredibly important. Other mugs read “QUEER,” “GENDER QUEER,” “THEY/THEM/THEIR,” and “NOT A LADY.” Referring to the mugs, Meg says: “It lets people be silent but say what they want to say.”
Everything Meg makes is handcrafted. While new to making ceramics, Meg is no stranger to the art world with a background in painting, film photography, and, most recently, video production. It was Meg’s father who introduced them to the art world. He taught Meg how to paint. When their father passed away four years ago, Meg couldn’t paint anymore. “I thought I was done with art, but that lasted about two months. Then I started going crazy,” Meg laughs and shakes their head. “A friend brought over some clay and it was tactile sensation that soothed me. So I took a class at Northern Clay Center and it filled that void that painting left and it gave me quiet time to think about my dad.” What Meg had discovered by working with ceramics was that it was much easier to commodify, because people can use the pieces.
As Meg continues to make money selling their pottery, it has transformed the meaning of this craft for them. The meaning of art transforms when it becomes commodified. “My pottery has evolved from being messy to being clean and desirable. I wish that it wasn’t how I made my money because then it would be messy again. It’s not very therapeutic anymore,” Meg says. I find a piece that doesn’t have any words on it. It is taller, in the shape of a cylinder. The mouth opens and splits, like a giant leaf of a plant, or a wave. There are intentional imperfections in this piece, and it’s beautiful to hold on to. Despite that, art in general has always been an important piece of Meg’s identity — something that can be linked back to their relationship with their father. When Meg made ceramics before getting a studio at the Northrup King building, they set up space in their home using their father’s drafting table. Meg would invite people over to make art together, building a space for creativity and community. Whether Meg is in a studio in Northeast Minneapolis, or working from home, they always make art on the drafting table that their father used. It was used to create his company, Mike Sweeney Advertising, and it’s where many of the creative projects he did throughout his life all began. For Meg, it’s a perfect space to be working on, whether it’s pottery or painting. “I feel like he’s there working with me,” Meg says. Their art is connected with their late father.
When asked what pushes them to keep going as an artist, without a moment’s pause Meg responds with “freedom.” For Meg, freedom equates to art. “I’m not going to be able to retire. I didn’t go to college or follow those ties that bind people. I knew since I was a small child that I was going to be an artist. I always said I was going to be an artist. That means I don’t have to work nine to five or drink shitty drip coffee and sit in rush hour traffic. I get to come into this beautiful studio and my coworkers are artists,” Meg says. Meg is interested in why art is such a coveted piece for people. They have hopes to investigate why the artists themselves are rarely respected — something they want to do through documentary filmmaking, which is another medium Meg is excited to explore. “You go to art galleries and museums, and these paintings and sculptures and photographs are prized possessions in people’s houses, and people show them off as a status symbol, but nobody wants their children to be artists. It takes a lot to be a wealthy artist, yet these pieces are so coveted. But if that person’s kid said, ‘I’m going to art school to become an artist,’ that parent is more than likely to be like, ‘No, you should go to school for something that’s going to make you money.’ And yet they invite their friends over to look at art as a status symbol,” Meg expresses, shaking their head.
When looking at the various pottery pieces in Meg’s studio space, it’s evident they are a storyteller across mediums. Stories emerge from their pieces, whether Meg intended for this or not. That’s the beauty of pottery. Every line and curve has been morphed and changed from the hands of the artist. Despite the reasoning behind the piece that was made, there is still a story in the very physical presence of the pottery. Meg continues, “I want to be known. I want people to know me from art. Even if they don’t know me personally, I want to move people in such a way that I can start inspiring other people. Which is not going to be from pottery. I know that. Outside of Minnesota, nobody knows my name. But I want to make something that touches people. Inspire people to look at art and start seeing it as a tangible thing.” Meg wants to inspire people to make art, to use art for all its positive aspects in their lives.
I’ve only known Meg for a short time, but their ability for connecting people to the positive aspects of art inspires community, passion, and inspiration. And it is this ability that will take this artist to places beyond Minnesota.
